FEATURE FOCUS: MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING
A relational approach to behaviour that supports mental health and wellbeing in school
The word discipline comes from the Latin root word discere – ‘to learn’, but in today’s schools it has very different connotations, bound up with rules, regulation and punishment. But are we doing a disservice to our children and young people with the increasingly punitive and draconian behaviour regimes prevalent in schools? Are we missing opportunities for children and young people to learn about themselves, their emotional state and positive ways to address their behaviour, and the impact it has on their current and future mental health? The Government gives schools mixed signals with non-statutory guidance from the Department for Education (DfE) on Behaviour and Mental Health (Nov 2018)1 seemingly at odds with their guidance on Behaviour and Discipline (Jan 2016)2 which is currently under review. What’s needed is to move away from the ‘established’ behaviourist systems based on fear and sanctions - so we stop adding further disadvantage to already vulnerable children – and begin providing support.
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n our final look this month at mental health and wellbeing we are delighted to hear from Julie Harmieson, Director of Education and National Strategy at Trauma Informed Schools UK (TISUK), who discusses a relational approach to behaviour to support children and young people’s mental health in school.
Children and young people exhibiting persistent disruptive behaviours, the most common reason for suspension and exclusion, maybe reacting to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) or other traumatic life experience, that has left their brains, minds and bodies in a state of chronic unrelieved stress. This toxic stress creates actual neurological, neurochemical
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and physiological changes as their bodies keep pumping out high levels stress hormones, cortisol and adrenaline and they are in a constant state of high alert, permanently in flight, fight or freeze mode.
Approaches to behaviour that rely on punishment, sanctions and shame, fail to support the child to understand or make sense of their experiences, adding to their stress and escalating the behaviour. Unable to self-regulate, with no control over their reactions to situations or environments, minor stressors are experienced as major emergencies, often resulting in children receiving further sanction.
Currently, many primary and secondary schools, use very visible classroom management systems, where anyone finding themselves on the wrong side of expectations for whatever reason, is made an example of. Some classrooms have a ‘good to be green board’ - with any child making a mistake, finding their name on red. Others have their name moved down the ladder of consequences with each infraction or their name may be written up on the board, the focus of everyone’s attention.
These shame-based strategies negatively impact self-esteem and set them up for further ignominy. With the root of the behaviour remaining unaddressed, there is a greater likelihood that it will be repeated with the child finding themselves removed from the classroom.
September 2022
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